A set of actions, including the acquisition and installation of equipment and staff training, underlies a new expenditure of USD 235.9 million authorized by the President of the Republic, focusing on the railway connection between Bungo Station, in downtown Luanda, and the António Agostinho Neto International Airport (AIAAN), in the province of Icolo e Bengo.
The decision is outlined in Presidential Decree No. 312/25, dated August 4, reviewed by Economia & Mercado, in which João Lourenço justifies the move by citing “deep challenges that compromise the efficiency” of Luanda’s urban railway system as a “structuring and strategic public transport network,” especially regarding the connection between the Luanda city center and the AIAAN.
The document further explains that the expenditure responds to the need for an “integrated and structured approach” combining investment in rolling stock, technological modernization, technical training and capacity building, and institutional strengthening. The goal is to upgrade the infrastructure and urban rail services of the Luanda Railway (CFL), with emphasis on the Bungo–AIAAN route.
According to the decree, the Head of State authorizes the expenditure of USD 235.9 million and the initiation of a Simplified Procurement Procedure (direct award), justified by external financing reasons, to contract the supply of ten diesel multiple units (DMUs) and the rehabilitation and modernization of existing ones.
The funds will also cover assisted operation and maintenance services, modernization of signaling and telecommunication systems (Bungo–Baía–AIAAN), and the creation of a Railway Training and Capacity-Building Center, aimed at strengthening urban mobility and rail access to the new airport.
This expenditure comes two weeks after João Lourenço also authorized, through another Presidential Decree published in the Diário da República, USD 51.9 million for “extensive rehabilitation” of the Luanda Railway’s double-track lines, described as a “key corridor” for mobility between the provinces of Luanda and Icolo e Bengo.
These funds add to several other allocations previously approved by the President to improve railway transport services, particularly along the Bungo–AIAAN route, whose operation was suspended due to ongoing works to ensure “greater safety for citizens and trains.” According to the CFL, this section is expected to be operational again in 2026.
Source: Economia & Mercado
